Forever & Always
by The Little Monster 1024
Summary: The now married Castle and Beckett try to solve the case of a missing five year old boy; along with drama from Alexis with a new boyfriend her father and step-mother aren't fond of. Castle also has a new book coming out which means signings and book tour.
1. Alexis' Secret

**Title: Forever**

**Rating: M (Muhahaha!) So…yeah…rated M…you've been warned.**

**AN: Hey guys! Thanks so much for your reviews and support for my last fic "Always". This is a sequel to that…but it can also be a stand alone. This is Castle and Beckett's married life. Oh, and I know you guys said that you wanted to see the wedding…it's kind of difficult to write. I'm working on it but for now, I want to start this. I might just post the wedding as a one-shot… (: Anyway, read, review…you know the drill.**

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><p>Three months had never gone by as quickly as the last three had for Detective Kate Castle. It had been three months since she and Castle married on the beach in the Hamptons. It seemed like it was just yesterday. After the wedding they left for the honeymoon in Hawaii and returned two weeks later. After that, everything seemed like a blur. Kate returned to work the day after the returned; Castle joined her, trailing behind her at a crime scene with a giddy smile covering her face. To be honest, not much had changed for our favorite duo. Their witty banter never ended. She was still the bad-ass cop she was known as; he was still the nine year old on a sugar rush that she loved.<p>

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><p>Kate felt the sun shining on her back as the early rays of the morning flooded into the bedroom. She opened her eyes knowing that she wasn't going to be falling asleep again. She lifted her head from the pillow the best she could with Castle's death grip on her to look at the alarm clock on his nightstand; 7:34 a.m. it read. <em>How typical <em>She thought to herself. The day she could sleep in, due to the fact she didn't have to head into the precinct until noon, she woke up at an early hour.

She sighed as she pulled herself free from her husband's grasp. _Husband._ She repeated in her head. She felt the stupid grin on her face form at the thought. She pushed it aside as she swung her legs off of the bed. Since she was up she figured she'd head downstairs and fix breakfast. Alexis was visiting from college, she would probably enjoy a real meal for a change. She knew she did during her college days.

As she stood she looked down at her clothes, well lack of clothes actually, and realized that she wasn't really presentable for her step-daughter and mother-in-law. She walked over to her closet and threw on and old navy blue NYPD t-shirt and grey shorts. She walked into the bathroom, washed her face, brushed her hair and pulled it into a messy ponytail.

After she approved herself in the mirror she crept down the stairs and into the kitchen. She moved around until she found pancake mix and a package of bacon in the fridge. She placed two frying pans on the stove; one for pancakes and one for bacon. As she began mixing the pancake mix and placing bacon strips in the pan, she decided to listen to music. She turned on the radio in the kitchen and turned it down low so that only she could hear it. She left it on the pop station that Alexis had set it on. She recognized the voice of Jennifer Lopez in the song due to the fact that Alexis was a huge fan and her voice could be heard coming from Alexis' room everytime she came home.

"_**I was down for the count  
>Feeling' like I'd come to the end<br>Nothing' really mattered  
>Nothing' left for me to mend…"<strong>_

Kate would admit, she wasn't really a JLO fan; she was more a Beatles and Doors fan; but she liked the song. She continued placing strips of bacon in the pan as she listening on.  
><em><strong><br>"…And then you came and I still couldn't see  
>Till you tore down every wall in me<br>How you healed me with your patience  
>If it's all I ever do<br>I'll never stop loving you"**_

She paused at the words. The irony was almost unbearable. She reflected on her and Rick. He was so patient with her, He waited and waited, not caring that she was being petty and selfish. He eventually tore down her wall; hell he knocked it down with a wrecking ball and pulled her from the other side. The words were true; their love was eternal. Nothing could make her stop loving him.

"Kate?" Came a voice from behind her, pulling her from her thoughts. She turned to see Alexis smiling at her.

"Hey Lex." Kate said, focusing on the girl instead of the music in the background. "Did you sleep well?" She asked.

Alexis nodded and studied her stepmother. She knew she had just pulled her from a deep thought; the remains of it were all over her face. "Did I interrupt something? You looked really deep in thought."

Kate shook her head as she flipped the bacon in the pan. "No, I was just really into the music I guess."

"Since when do you listen to Jennifer Lopez?" Alexis asked with an amused smile on her face. "From what I know about your musical pleasures not many of them are modern…well except for the occasional Britney Spears or Lady Gaga songs."

Kate laughed. "I know, but these lyrics really got me."

Alexis nodded. "It's a really pretty song…actually the whole album is great. I can burn you a copy if you want." She offered.

"That'd be nice. Thanks." She smiled as she put pancakes and bacon onto two different serving platters. "Want to help me set the table? Your Grandmother moved the dishes and silverware around again on one of her off days, I'm having trouble finding things." She said with a smile.

Alexis nodded. "Gram does this all the time. Don't worry you'll pick up on the pattern eventually…actually I'm surprised you haven't you've been living here for a while now."

Kate nodded. "Yeah, I probably would but your Gram won't let me cook much. She says that I work enough as it is. She hardly lets you father cook either."

"That may be a good thing," She said as she sat four glasses on the table along with plates and silverware. "You don't want to have the opportunity to try Smorletts." She said with a grimace.

"Smorletts?" Kate asked with a laugh.

"Just…don't ask." Alexis said with a giggle. "Done." She said with a satisfactory smile.

Kate looked up from the pan to see the table neatly set. She took the rest of the bacon and the pancakes out of their individual pans and set on the plates and them onto the table. "Do you want to go wake them up or wait?" Kate asked.

"We can wait." Alexis said, taking her seat at the table.

Kate sat down across from her and sipped at her coffee. "How's college been?" She asked semi-awkwardly. She and Alexis got along great but their conversations could be slightly awkward at times.

"Good." She answered, looking down at her cup of orange juice.

"Have you made anymore friends?" She asked. "Your Dad was telling me how you've been spending most of your time in your dorm studying." She paused. "That's great Alexis, but make sure you remember to branch out. Have a little fun; break some rules." She said with a smile.

Alexis couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped her lips. "A cop telling me to break some rules." She smiled. She took a deep breath as the smile faded away. She looked up at Kate. "If I tell you something, can you promise not to tell Dad?" She asked in a serious tone.

Millions of things flooded into Kate's mind. She couldn't help the feeling of happiness at the fact that she trusted her enough to share a secret, but her Detective instincts made her worry. Secrets weren't good. Rick had to know; he was her father…but she was her stepmother now…it wouldn't be bad if she told her and only her right? Kate slowly nodded. "Sure."

"I met this guy…" She hesitated.

Kate smiled. "That's great, Lex! What's he like?"

"He's studying to become a Cardiologist…well he studIED…" She said, putting emphasis on the past tense form of the word.

"You mean, he graduated?" She paused. It took at least seven years of school to become a cardiologist. "How old is he?"

"Twenty-six." She said quickly. "He started taking classes during his senior year like I did so he graduated last year. He's really sweet, and smart…you'd like him!"

Millions of questions and concerns flooded into her mind. Alexis obviously hadn't met him at school if he graduated over a year prior to her beginning. How did they meet? He could me lying! He could be some kind of criminal. _Stop it!_ She told herself in her head. It didn't help that he job made everyone seem like a criminal to her. She decided to stay calm and try to get information from the girl. "What's his name? How did you meet him? How long have you been seeing him?"

"His name is Conner Thomas. We've only been on five dates. I met him when he came to visit his sister, Jamie."

"Jamie? Your dorm mate?"

Alexis nodded.

"Alexis, you're only nineteen and he's twenty-six." She paused. "That's quite an age difference." She said gently.

"But I'm mature for my age! And Dad is seven years older than you!" She added.

Kate sighed, she should've known Alexis would bring that up. "Okay, I won't tell your father but you have to promise me a few things."

Alexis nodded. "What is it?"

"If this begins to get serious, I want to meet him and your father needs to know. Also, whenever you're about to go out with him I want you to text me where you are going and what time you get home just so I know that you're okay."

"Kate…" Alexis began to protest.

"Alexis," Kate interrupted. "If you want me to keep this secret I HAVE to know that you're safe."

Alexis hesitated before nodding. "He really is a good guy." Alexis paused. "I wouldn't have gone with him in the first place if I didn't know Jamie so well."

Kate nodded. "I know Lex, I trust you, it's just you know being a cop makes everyone suspicious to me and I don't want anything to happen to you."

Alexis nodded and couldn't help the little bit of happiness that rushed through her at the concern in her stepmother's voice. Gina and hell, Meredith her own mother had never shown her this much care before. Gina was rude and treated her like a child and Meredith just didn't care. It was nice for a change for someone to care. "Okay…I'll let you know."

"Thank you." Kate said with a smile.

Alexis looked down and fiddled with her hair tie that rested around her wrist, suddenly becoming uncomfortable at the realization that this was the first real conversation she had had with the Detective since over three years ago when she asked her opinion about overseas for school. She also felt guilty for the fact that she resented her so much after her shooting; it felt stupid…childish.

"Lex?" Kate asked, noticing the look on Alexis' face. "Is everything okay?"

Alexis nodded. "Uh…so, how's work been? Any interesting cases? How's Dr. Parish? I really miss interning with her; she was so fun to be around."

Kate noticed the sudden change in topics but dismissed it. "Oh, actually no, the city's been pretty quiet…weirdly quiet actually. It's been pretty boring around the precinct, mostly paperwork, that's why your Dad hasn't been going very much. I don't really like it when he watches me do paper work." She chuckled. "And Lanie actually asked about you the other day. I think she misses your company too. She doesn't really like the new woman at the morgue and well, you met the guys."

"James and Pat? Charming gentlemen." She said with a roll of the eyes and a sarcastic tone.

Kate couldn't help the laugh. "Actually, Lanie was talking about going out for a girls' night. You can come if you want."

"Really?" Alexis asked excitedly. "I don't want to weigh you guys down since I'm under twenty-one."

"Oh no!" She insisted. "We can always have a girls' night in at Lanie's or we can send your father away and Martha could join us too."

Alexis smiled. "That sounds like fun! Thanks."

"What sounds like fun?" Castle asked, surprising the two women as he descended the stairs. He walked through the living room to the table where he leaned down to kiss Alexis on the cheek.

"Kate invited me to have a girl's night with her and Dr. Parish."

"Oh," Castle said, as he leaned down and kissed Kate quickly on the lips. "I hope you keep them out of trouble."

Both women rolled their eyes. "Yeah, I'm the one that gets into trouble." Kate said sarcastically.

"Ohh! Who made bacon?" He asked, ignoring her comment and reaching for a piece.

"I did." She said, smacking his hand away. "Wait for your mother!"

Castle sat down next to Kate before speaking. "I passed her in the hallway. She said that she heard you down here cooking and wanted me to tell you that she'd pick something up on the way to her studio."

"That's right!" Alexis said. "We're going to her studio today!" She looked down at her phone to check the time. "We're leaving in like five minutes!" She panicked.

Kate nodded. "Okay, just start eating and take some with you."

Alexis nodded with a smile as she began eating.

Kate turned to her husband to see that he had already devoured half of a pancake and a piece of bacon. She smiled as she reached for her own piece.

"How long have you been awake?" He asked her with a smile.

"About half an hour." She replied. "You?"

"Since you got out of bed, I was hoping you were coming back but when I heard the chatter between you two I knew that I was going to have to get up." He laughed.

"You heard what we said?" Alexis asked nervously.

Castle and Beckett both looked over at the girl. Kate gave her a look silently telling her to remain calm.

"No." Castle said. "Why, are you two hiding something?"

Alexis quickly shook her head quickly; too quickly in Castle's opinion. He gave her a look but when he received no answer he turned to Kate. "What's going on?'

Kate smiled and reached her hand up to gently pat his face. "Girl talk, Babe. Trust me, you don't want to know."

Castle looked back and forth between them both before sighing. "I don't know whether to be worried because you two have secrets you're keeping from me or be happy because you two seem to be bonding."

"Option two, Castle." Kate said with a smile as she took a bite of her pancake. "Option two."

Castle was about to add a witty comeback but was interrupted by stifled giggles coming from across the table. Kate noticed too and looked up at Alexis.

"Would you like to share with the class?" Castle asked.

"I just find it funny that you call her 'Kate' or 'Honey' or 'Sweetheart' or something like that, and she only addresses you as 'Castle.'"

"That's not true." Kate said. "I call him Rick sometimes."

"Really? When?" Alexis asked.

"In the bedroom." Castle said quickly.

The room fell silent and all eyes focused on him. He then realized what had just slipped from him mouth and who was sitting across the table from him. "Uh…um…you know like before we go to sleep she says 'Goodnight Rick, I love you.' And then I reply 'Goodnight, Kate, I love you too.'"

They all sat their silently eating, unfortunately Castle wasn't very good at thinking on his feet at the moment.

"Alexis darling! Are you ready?" Martha asked taking them all by surprise as she entered the kitchen.

Alexis quickly nodded, ready to do anything to escape the awkwardness that rested in loft at the moment. She stood and gathered her things before turning to leave. "Bye Dad! Bye Kate! See you later tonight!"

"Goodbye!" They said in unison as they waved at both she as Martha as the exited the loft.

When the door latched shut Kate turned to Castle and smacked him gently on the arm. "What is wrong with you?"

"It slipped out." He said apologetically.

She rolled her eyes as she stood to get more coffee. "You need to watch what you say in front of her. I realize she's an adult but I'm pretty sure doesn't want to know about what you and I do in our bedroom after dark."

Castle smiled as he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her stomach, pulling her towards him as he placed a kiss on her head. "Speaking of what we do in our bedroom, you fell asleep entirely too early last night."

Kate smiled and wiggled around in his arms until she was pinned against the kitchen island facing him. "I did, didn't I?" She smiled as she kissed him gently on the lips. "I don't have to go into work until noon; how about we make up for that?"

Castle smiled and reached under her, gently lifting her into his arms. She wrapped her legs around his middle as he sat her up on the island. She pulled him close and wrapped her arms tightly around him, not removing her legs from around him. He leaned down to kiss her. It started off sweet and slow but turned passionate and desperate as his hands slowly inched up under her shorts. Her hands wandered down to the elastic waistband of his sweatpants were she felt him growing more and more excited. She smiled a sinister smile under his lips as she slipped her hand inside his pants. He stiffened at her touch through his boxers.

"Damn Kate." He growled, pulling his lips from hers. She sighed in frustration as his lips left hers, but the frustration was short lived as he began kissing down her neck. He lifted her into his arms again, this time sliding his hands up her shirt, as he continued his assault on her neck.

"Rick don't leave a mark." She said quickly. "I'll never hear the end of it from the boys."

He laughed as he began to walk to the stairs when a small gasp stopped him in his tracks. He removed his lips from Kate's neck as he looked into the embarrassed face of his daughter. "Uh, Alexis…"

"What?" Kate asked, not being able to see due to the fact that she was facing the wrong direction.

Rick slowly put her down, he legs untangling from around him as she set her feet on the ground. She saw Alexis and her face turned red with embarrassment.

"Uh…I-I forgot my purse." She said, stumbling to the couch to retrieve her purse. Once she had it in hand she ran to the door and left, shouting "Sorry for interrupting!" as the door closed.

Kate and Rick stood there for a minute both embarrassed.

"I can not believe that just happened." Kate whispered.

"At least she didn't see anything."

Kate was about to roll her eyes before she nodded in agreement. He was right. It could've been a lot worse. "From now on, let's stay upstairs for this stuff."

Rick nodded before turning and lifting her into his arms again. "Upstairs?" He smiled.

"Yes Kitten." She almost purred, a smirk resting on her face.

"Oh, you're going to have to be punished for that." He said.

She smiled as she leaned in close to him and whispered in his ear. "Punish away."

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><p><strong>Okay! What did you think! Love it hate it? Please REVIEW!<strong>

**Oh and for the age thing…you know when Alexis says that Castle is seven years older than Beckett? I'm not really sure about that so I just used the actors' ages. Stana Katic is seven years younger than Nathan Fillion.**

**Again...REVIEW! Please? *puppy dog eyes* :D :D**


	2. Special Case'

**Chapter Two**

**AN: Thanks so much for the reviews and subscriptions! :D You guys are great! Oh, and a special thanks to The Friendly Anon who pointed out a few mistakes in the first chapter! First, Castle is about nine years older than Beckett instead of seven. The other mistake I'm rather disappointed in myself for. I said that Castle's bedroom is on the second floor when it is on the first floor along with his office. Honestly, I notice that little detail in other fics; I always notice when others make the mistake and then I go and make it for myself. I'll use the excuse of strep throat and NyQuil. (: I might fix the mistakes eventually, but honestly I'll probably just forget. As you're reading just remember those little facts. OKAY! Now on to the next chapter! :D**

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><p>The sound of a cell phone ringing awoke the happy couple from their slumber. Castle groaned as he rolled over to face his wife who was snuggled up against his back.<p>

"Your phone is ringing." He said gently.

She sighed and sat up, pulling the sheet around her naked body, not wanting to feel the chill of the air. She reached for her phone that rested on her nightstand and quickly answered after the third ring in fear she'd miss the call.

"Beckett." She said firmly despite the fact that she was exhausted. She answered the phone saying 'Beckett' even though it was 'Castle' now, around the precinct she was still 'Beckett' to avoid confusion.

Castle watched as she nodded and replied with a quick. "See you in twenty." As she hung up.

Rick sighed. "New body?"

She shook her head. "Nope. Gates said she needs to talk to us right away."

Rick sat up and pulled her close to him, kissing her deeply. "Can't we just let the boys handle whatever it is?"

Her hands wandered up to his neck for only a second before she pulled away. "We need to go." She said standing and walking to the closet to pull a pair of jeans and a white long-sleeved v-neck from the closet along with a pair of black heels.

Castle watched as she got dressed and laughed when he noticed the marks on her neck. "Uh, honey, you might want to wear a turtleneck or something."

"What?" She asked, walking into the bathroom. She moved her hair from around her neck and noticed the marks. "Damn it Rick!" She said, walking back into the bedroom.

"Hey! You weren't complaining last night!" He said with a smirk as he finished getting dressed.

Kate sighed in frustration as she looked through her closet. "All of my turtlenecks are dirty!"

"Wear a scarf." Rick suggested.

She sighed, grabbing her red and white scarf and her red trench coat. "It's a little warm for a scarf and coat don't you think?" She asked, walking into the bathroom to pull her hair into a ponytail.

He nodded as he joined her. "Yeah I guess…you could always just not wear one." He stood next to her by the sink as he quickly brushed his teeth.

"No thanks. I don't need the boys or Gates seeing these." She said, also brushing her teeth.

"They know we're married; why do you care if they see?" He asked as he spat into the sink.

"Because, they're like my brothers…like family. I wouldn't show up at my Dad's house with hickeys all over my neck." She said, as she finished up brushing her teeth.

"Good point."

They both finished getting ready in silence before quickly exiting the loft and heading to the precinct to talk to Captain Gates.

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><p>"Do you feel as nervous as I do?" Castle asked as he and Beckett approached Captain Gates' office. Captain Gates' had defiantly warmed up to them both over the last year. They could even be called friends, but the pair couldn't help the small feeling of nervousness that gathered inside of them when they were called into her office. It was like school all over again; that feeling you got as if you were dying a little inside at the sound of the principal calling you to his office.<p>

Beckett nodded. "Yeah a little." She said looking over at her husband who had a nervous expression on his face. "Don't worry honey, I'll protect you."

Castle laughed as they pushed the doors of the office open and approached Gates' desk.

"Captain Gates?" Beckett said.

Captain Gates looked up from the paper work on her desk and gave the couple a warm smile. "Sit." She said, pointing to the two chairs in front of her desk. It really felt like principal's office now.

"You said it was important?" Beckett asked again, questioning the severity of their meeting because of her telling them to sit.

Gates nodded and stood from her chair to stand in front of her desk before taking a seat on her desk, sitting in front of them. "It is." She paused. "I need your help on a special case. Both of your help." She said, looking between both of them.

Beckett glanced at her husband to now see an excited face, erasing all nervousness. She however, felt differently. 'Special cases' were hardly ever a good thing. "What is it?"

"A little boy was kidnapped from the park not an hour ago. I want your help on this case because of your success in returning Angela Candela to her father in 2009."

Kate instantly shook her head. "No. No, I don't do kidnappings. I'm a homicide detective. Robbery usually handles kidnappings. Let them handle it."

Rick noticed the surprised look on the captain's face. He didn't blame her. If he didn't know about her past with child kidnappings he would also find her words harsh. "Kate-"

"Rick, I'm not doing it." She said, shooting him a death glare.

"It wasn't a question; it was an order." Gates said, handing her a piece of paper with the information on the case.

Kate ripped it from her grasp and left the room. "Come on Castle." She muttered as she left.

Castle stood and looked at Gates. "She didn't mean to sound so selfish and rude. She worked a case with a child before Angela that wasn't so lucky…and you know how she plays it close to the vest." With that, he quickly jogged out of the office to catch up with Kate before she got on the elevator.

Gates sat there. She got it. Every cop had that case; that case that they failed at. The case that haunted them. She also knew that no matter how much experience you have, a case with a child was difficult…painful.

Kate and Rick stood in silence in the elevator. Rick looked over at her. She was leaning against the wall of the elevator, reading the piece of paper, and running a hand through her hair; just like she did whenever she was nervous. _A nervous Kate. That's something you don't see everyday._ Rick thought to himself. "What does it say?" He asked, breaking the silence.

"His name is Matthew Johnston. He is five years old. Brown hair, blue eyes, about three feet four inches tall, and weighs about forty pounds. He was last seen wearing a Mickey Mouse t-shirt and blue jeans." She paused. "That's it. His Mom last saw him about forty five minutes ago. She called the police after she and all the other Moms and children in the park couldn't find him anywhere."

Rick nodded. "Are Esposito and Ryan helping us with this one?"

She nodded. "Yeah. They should be arriving shortly after us. There are some uniforms on the scene now."

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><p><strong>Okay, what did you think? Let me know! :D :D<strong>


	3. Every Wednesday

Chapter Three

**AN: Thank you guys so much! You're awesome! Sorry for the mistakes I had! Okay, now I might be wrong about this, but I believe in child abductions federal agents are only called in when there is foul play involved. I'm just going to write the story like that, if it's wrong I'm sorry. **

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><p>Kate took a deep breath as she prepared herself for the exit of her Crown Vic. She could already see the mother in tears standing near a group of uniforms. There was a crowd forming around the area; concerned mothers and other children from the park.<p>

She put her hand on the handle and pushed it open. She felt a breeze as she closed the door. She walked towards the crowd, knowing Castle was behind her. She sighed in annoyance as her heels sunk in the soft dirt of the park. The park was obviously still affected by the rainstorm the city had received a few days ago.

A few uniforms had noticed her arrival and were approaching her. She gave them a small smile as she stood beside them and the mother.

Kate formed a sympathetic and warm smile as she reached for the woman's hand. "Hello, I'm Detective Kate Castle," She paused. "This is Mr. Castle."

The woman shook her hand. "I'm Marie Johnston."

Kate studied the woman. She was much shorter than her, with brown hair and cat-like green eyes. She had a kind face. "I'm going to be working your son's case; I'm going to have to ask you some questions."

The woman nodded as more tears escaped her eyes. Kate placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Kate heard a noise behind her and noticed Esposito and Ryan behind her, signaling for her to come to them. She nodded and turned back to Mrs. Johnston. "Excuse me."

Castle stood with the mother and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. He nodded towards Beckett and the boys. "Don't worry. They won't stop until they find your boy. They're the best New York has; trust me."

Kate walked over to the boys.

"What do you want us to do?" Esposito asked.

Kate looked around at all of the people. "Find out who can be helpful to us around here; send the rest of the people home. I'm going to go talk to the mother."

The boys nodded and Beckett headed back over to join Castle and Mrs. Johnston. She suggested that they find a bench to sit and talk away from the people. Once they were alone, she began her questions.

"Can you tell me in full detail what happened?" Kate asked.

Mrs. Johnston nodded. "Matt and the other kids," She began pointing over to the group of children and parents standing with Esposito and Ryan. "Were playing a game of hide and seek. He came over to me and told me that Andy was counting, he wanted to know where he should hide." Her voice broke as she spoke. "Jenna told me I couldn't help; it was cheating. After that Matt and Jenna ran off towards the swing set to hide. I went back to reading after that."

Kate nodded, telling the woman to go on.

"After a while, all of the other kids were back. They were talking about how good Matt was; no one had found him yet." She wiped at the tears streaming down her face. "Soon the kids gave up and told him he could come out…but he didn't. We all started looking then and no one could find him. That's why I called the police."

Kate glanced over at her husband to see him focused on the woman. He normally would be making little comments, but they all knew that children weren't to be joked about. She watched as tears escaped the woman's eyes quickly, dark black streaks ran down her cheeks. Kate felt tears form in her eyes. She quickly pushed them away. "Where is Matt's father?" Kate asked, in case it was a custodial abduction.

"Oh, John is in Afghanistan right now." She said. "Air force."

Kate and Rick gave her a small sympathetic smile. She was facing the nightmare alone; they felt bed for her. Kate tried to shake off the feeling as she continued with her questions.

"Can you tell us in full detail what Matt was wearing?" She knew the paper had already said it, but she wanted to hear some specifics.

"He, uh, he was wearing a Mickey Mouse T-shirt, blue jeans," He paused to think. "The jeans had grass stains on the knees and he was wearing black Chucks."

Kate made a note of it before giving the worried mother the best smile she could manage to form. "Okay, thank you Mrs. Johnston, We're going to canvass the area and talk to other people who were in the park. We'll let you know if we find anything. You can stay put."

Kate turned and looked at Esposito and Ryan who were standing with three children, two women, and a man.

"Espo, Ryan!" Kate called out to them. "Canvass the area, Castle and I will talk to the kids."

The boys excused themselves to canvass as the Castles made their way to the group. Kate and Rick studied the kids. The oldest seemed to be the taller blonde girl. "She must be Jenna." Rick whispered to Kate as they got closer.

Kate nodded. "I'll talk to her. You can talk to the boys. I have a feeling Jenna is going to know the most."

Rick nodded in agreement as they reached their destination.

"Hi, I'm Detective Kate Castle, and this is Mr. Castle." She said as always, extending her hands to shake the parents' hands. Rick copied her actions. She then knelt down a little to the children to shake their hands one by one. She gave them a warm smile, trying to ease their fears. It had little to no affect just as she had expected.

The man was the first to talk. "Hi, I'm Greg's father," he said, pointing to the smallest boy. "Have you found anything on Matt?"

Rick shook his head. "No, we were actually hoping we could as your kids some questions." He said, looking between all of them.

The man looked at each woman who both nodded in permission. "Sure," He answered. "We'll do anything we can to help get Matt home."

Kate and Rick exchanged a quick glance, silently discussing where they should handle the conversations. Rick nodded his head towards the playground, thinking the kids might feel less intimidated if they played and talked. Kate nodded.

Kate began first, kneeling down to talk to Jenna. "Hi, I'm Kate, you must be Jenna." She said. The girl only nodded. Kate figured she was shy…or maybe intimidated by the gun that rested around her belt. "Can I ask you some questions about Matt?" Another nod. "Do you want to take a walk with me?" She asked.

This time Jenna spoke. "Sure." She paused. "Can we sit in the pumpkin?" She asked, pointing towards the giant rusty pumpkin sitting next to the sandbox. Kate figured it was supposed to resemble Cinderella's pumpkin, and assumed it had at one point. She couldn't believe in all of her trips to the park she had never noticed it. "Sure Sweetie." She said as the girl led the way.

Rick smiled as he watched them walk away. Kate's amazing way with children never ceased to amaze him. Her turned and focused back on the two boys. "Hey, I'm Rick." He smiled. "Let me guess, you guys are Andy and Greg?"

The two boys exchanged glances. "How did you know that?" Andy asked.

"I just knew." He chuckled.

The boys smiled exchanging another look. "No, my Dad said my name and someone must have told you Andy's name." Greg said knowingly.

"Ah, you boys are too smart to be fooled that easily aren't you?"

The boys nodded at him with smug smiles. Rick couldn't help but chuckle at them.  
>"How about this; I'll go play on the playground with you guys if I can ask you some questions as we play?"<p>

The boys both instantly nodded and ran towards the playground equipment. Rick looked back at the parents. "We'll bring them back when we're finished." He said quickly, jogging after the boys.

When he reached the playground the boys were both climbing up the steps and running towards the monkey bars. Rick walked over and stood at the end of the bars to talk with the boys. "So, how old are you guys? Twenty-six? Twenty-seven?"

The boys laughed at him. "No," Andy said. "I'm seven and Greg is five."

Castle smiled. "I was close."

Andy began going across the monkey bars as he spoke again to Rick. "Are you a cop? Can we see your gun?" He asked excitedly.

Castle shook his head. "Nope, not a cop."

"Then why are you with the cops?" Andy asked, finishing the monkey bars with a satisfactory smile on his face.

"My wife is a cop, well Homicide Detective." He said, pointing over to the giant pumpkin where Kate was talking to Jenna.

Andy and Greg looked over at the pumpkin. "She's pretty." Greg said.

"Yeah, she is." He said with a smile.

"Do you have any kids?" Greg asked.

Rick nodded. "Yeah, a daughter named Alexis."

"Where is she? Can she play too?"

Castle couldn't help the laugh that escaped his lips. "I don't know, she's in college right now."

"College?" Both boys said in unison.

* * *

><p>Kate climbed into the pumpkin after Jenna, ducking her head to fit through the little doorway. Once inside, she found it surprisingly roomy. "This is nice." She commented.<p>

"It's my favorite part of the park." Jenna said, playing with a bracelet that rested around her wrist.

"Do you come here a lot?" Kate asked.

Jenna nodded. "We come here every Wednesday- Greg, Andy, Matt, and Me."

"Are you the oldest?"

Jenna nodded again. "I'm eight, Andy is seven, and Greg and Matt are five."

"So you guys are friends?" Kate asked with a smile.

"Yeah, it's kind of boring sometimes; I'm the only girl." She commented.

Kate smiled at her. "You know, I'm the only girl on my team."

Jenna looked up at her, Kate was making a connection with her, and hopefully she'd open up to her a little.

"You are? Is it boring being with all of the annoying boys?"

Kate laughed. "Well, two of the boys are like my brothers and the other is my husband." She paused. "You're right though, they're annoying sometimes. But it's not that bad, I'm their boss."

"You are?" She smiled. "You get to tell them what to do and stuff?"

Kate nodded.

"Which one are you married to?"

Kate pointed to the playground where Castle was helping Greg cross the monkey bars. "That one."

Jenna looked at him with a smile. "Do you guys have any kids?"

Kate shook her head. "We don't have any together, but I have a step-daughter. She's great."

"My Mom is going to have another baby in a few months." She smiled. "I hope it's a girl."

"I always wanted a little brother or sister when I was your age." Kate commented.

"You didn't get one?"

Kate shook her head. "My parents only wanted one kid."

It was silent for a few seconds before Kate spoke again. "Can I ask you some questions about Matt?"

Jenna nodded slowly, the smile fading from her face.

"When did you see him last?"

"We were all playing hide and seek and Andy was counting. Greg came and hid in the pumpkin…Matt tried to get help from his Mom but I told him it was cheating so he and I ran off and tried to find a spot. He told me he was hiding behind the water fountain by the bathrooms..." She paused. "I told him not to…we're not supposed to go past this pumpkin because our parents can't see us if we do, but he said that he'd be fine." She paused again. "When the boys couldn't find him I pretended not to know where he was…he always loses so I thought it would be cool for him to win once."

Kate nodded. "So, since you guys come here every week, did you notice anything out of the ordinary today? Like someone hanging around or talking to you guys?"

Jenna shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

Kate noticed. "Jenna? You can tell me."

She sighed. "There's a guy that comes to the park every Wednesday when we're here. He always gives us candy…I know that we're not supposed to talk to strangers but he's here ALL the time, so he's not really a stranger anymore…" She paused. "But Matt is his favorite."

"Do you parents know about him?" She asked, hoping that they did. Maybe he was a friend.

Jenna shook her head. "He told us not to tell."

Kate sighed and shook her head. "Honey, you CANNOT talk to strangers like that anymore, okay?"

Jenna nodded sadly, disappointed in herself. "I'm sorry."

"Was he here today?"

Jenna nodded again. "He was here before we all got here and left shortly after we started playing."

Kate felt a panic rush through her. He could have Matt, if so they needed to find him quickly.

"What do you know about this man? Name? Kind of car? What he looks like?"

"Uh, he told us to call him Jack, he is really tall and skinny, and has black hair and a mustache." She paused. "His car is red."

Kate nodded. The information wasn't that helpful but it was a start. She could have the boys ask others around the park; they might know more information. "Thanks for your help Jenna." She paused. "Why don't we head back to your Mom?"

Jenna nodded as they both exited the pumpkin. Jenna ran ahead of her to her mother. Kate turned and walked over to greet Rick, Greg, and Andy.

They all smiled at her as she approached. "Hey boys." She paused. "Did you have fun with Mr. Castle?"

They both nodded at her with smiles on their faces.

"That's great! Why don't you head back over to where your parents are?" She told them.

They nodded and ran over shouting a quick goodbye over their shoulders.

When they were out of hearing range, Kate turned to her husband. "Did you get anything?"

He shook his head. "Nope. They didn't really want to talk about Matt." He paused. "They only wanted to talk about you, Espo, and Ryan and how your guns are cool." He smiled. "Typical little boys."

Kate nodded. "I got a great lead from Jenna. We need to get it back to the boys." She said, starting to walk towards the boys that were heading towards them, obviously just finishing up their canvass.

They met each other halfway. "We didn't really find much." Esposito said.

Ryan nodded. "The only thing anyone saw of Matt was when he and the other kids were running around and playing."

Kate nodded. "I need you to ask people around the park about a tall, skinny, black haired man with a mustache named Jack who drives a red car." She paused. "Apparently this man gave all of the kids candy every Wednesday, and Matt was his favorite."

"That's all you got on him?" Ryan asked. "It's a little broad."

Kate sighed. "I know, but hopefully something will turn up."

Ryan and Esposito nodded. "We'll let you know what we find."

Kate and Rick were heading back to the parents of the kids and to Mrs. Johnston to ask them about the mysterious Jack when a uniform shouted behind them. "Detective Castle!"

They both turned to look at the woman signaling for them to come over to her. They soon realized where they were headed; the water fountain where Matt had been hiding.

"What did you find?" Kate asked.

"It may be nothing," She paused, holding up the small object which rested in a plastic bag. "But it's a band-aid. If its Matt's it may be a sign of struggle."

Kate nodded and took the bag from her. "Thank you."

They headed back over to where all of the parents and children, including Mrs. Johnston were standing.

"Mrs. Johnston?" Kate said, asking the woman to step aside with her and Rick. Mrs. Johnston came and stood by them. Kate held the bag up. "Is this Matt's?" Kate asked gently.

The mother leaned in to study the _Toy Story_ band-aid covered in dirt and nodded with a sob escaping her lips. "It was on his finger, he cut it yesterday when he was playing in the backyard. Oh my God." She cried.

Kate swallowed hard and took a deep breath. Child abductions were the hardest types of cases. "It's okay Mrs. Johnston; we're doing everything we can to find your son."

Soon, the Castles were in Kate's Crown Vic headed back to the precinct to talk to Gates and work on the case. They had everything they needed for the time from the park. Ryan and Esposito were finishing the canvass and would soon meet them with hopefully more information.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the long wait! Let me know what you think!<strong>

**Oh, and I want your guys' opinion. Would you like to see other couples' POV too? Like Espo and Lanie and Ryan and Jenny; or would you rather just stick with Castle and Beckett?**


	4. Déjà Vu

Chapter Four

**AN: Thanks for the reviews! :D **

**Oh, and just a heads up, this chapter has a lot of dialogue. The case plays a big part in this story. I've never gone so into detail with a case before in a fic while also trying to maintain the romantic story between Caskett. Let me know if it starts getting too serious…or maybe too fluffy. (:**

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><p>The elevator doors skidded open to reveal a very crowded precinct. Kate's eyes shuffled through the sea of people and groaned when she saw Gates signaling them to join her in her office. She loved Gates but nothing good ever came from talking to her in her office.<p>

"Come on," Kate said, grabbing the sleeve of Rick's coat. "Gates wants to talk to us."

They pushed through the people and found her open office door and quickly slipped in, closing it behind them.

"What did you guys find?" Gates asked, wasting no time.

"A possible lead." Kate simply said. "Who are all of these people?"

Rick looked out the clear windows of Gates' office. It was obvious; federal agents had been called in. "You called in federal agents?" Rick asked Gates, giving her an annoyed look.

Gates nodded. "Yes, a federal agent was called in."

Castle couldn't help the feeling of déjà vu that crept inside of him. "Who?"

Kate flashed him a 'You don't really think…?' look. She looked at Gates, wanting an answer, but praying to God that their suspicions were just that.

"Agent Will Sorenson." She responded casually.

"What?" The Castles both said in unison.

"Is there some sort of problem?"

"Yes." Rick mumbled.

Kate sighed. "No sir, where is he now?"

"He should be back from the scene about now." She paused. "He arrived right before you left. He said he wasn't going to stay long."

Kate sighed and led Rick from the room. The stood out by her desk as their eyes scanned the precinct looking for any signs of Will.

"What ever happened between you two?" Rick asked. "The last I heard you guys were giggling together in the hospital room."

Kate sighed. "Right after the Candela case he asked me to get back together with him…I asked him what would happen when he left again. He told me to go with him." She paused. "I didn't know what to do so, he told me to think about it."

"What made you decide you didn't want to be with him?" Rick asked, wondering what made him so much luckier than Sorenson.

"I really liked him…he was someone that I was able to be myself with…" She trailed off. "But, I couldn't count on him to be there for me…while I'm very independent, I like to know that someone will be there, you know? I shouldn't have to move cities just to be with someone."

"That's why you decided you couldn't be with him?"

She nodded. "He asked me to keep in touch…I called him once or twice but what we had was just kind of…fading."

Rick nodded; he'd always wanted to know but by the time he had the right to ask the memory had slipped him mind. Kate turned back to the sea of people, knowing the conversation was over. She was actually surprised that he hadn't asked before.

"Since we're on the topic of ex boyfriends," Rick said. "You could tell about your break up with Josh…or why you broke up with Demming." He said with a hopeful smile.

Kate smiled and patted his chest lightly. "Another time, Castle."

Rick chuckled before looking at her seriously. "You know," Rick began. "This could be a little interesting." He said with a smirk.

"How so?"

"Well, the last time you saw Will, you wanted to shoot me and bury me in a shallow grave;" He smiled. "And now we're married and you let me do things to you on inanimate objects around the loft."

She tried to stifle back a laugh as she smacked his arm. "Keep talking like that at work and you won't have that privilege anymore."

"Got it."

Kate smiled up at him, she couldn't help the sense of happiness at that fact that he could help ease the fears that she had going into this case.

He noticed the smile; the smile that he seldom saw at work. "What's got you all smiley?"

"You." She said quickly without thinking. "I mean, you know, I just…you make this a lot easier for me." She said, leaning up and kissing his cheek quickly. "Thank you."

He was about to say something but was interrupted by Esposito and Ryan entering the room, so he just placed his hand on the small of her back for a second, patting it gently.

"What did you guys find?" Kate asked, quickly snapping back into the case. There'd be a time for her and Rick to talk later, at the moment all that mattered was finding the little boy.

"Not much," Esposito said, taking a seat at his desk. "Other park visitors had never heard of Jack or if they had, they knew nothing about him."

Kate nodded. "Well, he was at the park everytime Jenna, Andy, Greg, and Matt were there. Check neighborhoods around where each child lives for a Jack that fits out description." She paused. "Check sex offenders also, there's also the possibility that he gave the kids a fake name."

"But the kids went EVERY Wednesday, it was a habit, something they did all the time and he would've known that." Castle said.

She shook her head. "But how did he know the first time?"

"Right place at the right time?" Castle answered.

Kate thought about it as so many possibilities flooded into her head. Jack could be a sex offender who likes to hang around the park and took a liking to Jack or maybe he was someone that Matt knew personally. Or maybe Jack wasn't relevant at all; maybe he was just a lonely man who liked the park? Her mind drifted to Angela Candela and the fact that her aunt had kidnapped her. "Ryan, run a background check on the family and all of the immediate family; make sure that this isn't a family spat like with the Candelas."

Ryan nodded and began to work.

Kate turned back to the board and studied the events on the timeline. The events, arriving at the park at 8:30, the childrens playing on the playground until around 9:00, Matthew going to hide at about 9:10, the kids playing until about 9:20 until they gave up and began looking for Matt; led up to Matt's disappearance. The window of time was between 9:10 and 9:30 when he wasn't in his hiding spot. "You know," She began, turning to Castle. "No one heard a scream, so he must have willingly gone with the kidnapper."

"So he knew him?" Castle paused. "Would he have known this Jack person enough to just leave with him?"

"Well, I've been thinking about that. While it's a very good lead, we shouldn't land on this theory completely. There's still the possibility of a family member or some random creepy crawler from the park."

Castle thought for a second before something else popped into his mind. "The band-aid. The band-aid was a sign of struggle, just because no one heard a scream doesn't mean that he willingly walked off with the person, he could've been gagged…or chloroformed…or just had his mouth covered."

Kate nodded. "Yes, but just because a band-aid fell off doesn't automatically mean he struggled. How many times does a band-aid slip off of your finger without you wanting it to? It could've simply slid off of him while he was running or kneeling down on the ground."

They both turned back to the board again, neither having enough information to continue finishing each other's sentences. They were both so engrossed in what they were reading they didn't notice the commotion of a certain federal agent entering the precinct and heading towards them.

"Detective Beckett?" Came a deep voice from behind them.

The Castle's both turned and looked at the source of the noise; Agent Will Sorenson. Rick couldn't help the mix of emotions go through his body. He wasn't really happy that they had to have federal help, but he couldn't help the pride at the fact that he was married to Kate.

Kate forced a small smile, although they didn't really end bitterly it was still awkward all these years later.

Will stood and took in the sight before him, his ex-girlfriend, as beautiful as ever. He would be lying if he said that giving up on them was the stupidest decision he's ever made. What he wasn't that thrilled about was the fact that Richard Castle was still standing not an inch away from her.

"It's Castle." Castle said, correcting Will's mistake in using Kate's maiden name.

"I know who you are Castle." Will said in a slightly irritated tone.

"No, I mean its Detective Castle."

Kate stood next to Castle, watching as the conversation unwound in front of her.

"You're a detective now?" Will asked in a half chuckle.

Rick shook his head. "No, but she is." He said, pointing to Kate. "She's Detective Castle."

Kate held back a laugh at the sight of the dumbfounded look on Will's face.

"Wait, what?"

Kate sighed and held up her hand with her wedding ring clearly visible. "Married three months."

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><p><strong>I know this is kind of a weird ending spot. (: I know I know, but believe it or not, it was on purpose! :D Don't forget to review and tell me what you think! I need your opinions like Beckett needs coffee! ;)<strong>

_**Follow Me on Twitter: JoWS1024  
><strong>__**Follow Me on Tumblr: JoWS1024**_


	5. Damn that woman!

**AN: HAPPY CASTLE MONDAY! :D Sorry for the long wait! Oh, and incase you haven't noticed, my updates tend to have a trend; long chapter…short chapter. Well, this is a shorter chapter. Thank you so much for your wonderful reviews! I'm glad you liked that last part with Will. He was always my least favorite of Beckett's boyfriends. He was so…not Castle. (: **

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><p>Will stood there in shock. His eyes shifted from the giant diamond on Kate's hand, to the satisfactory smile on Castle's face to the dazzling smile on hers. Married? No! The last time he was here Kate couldn't stand him! How? He just couldn't grasp the idea.<p>

"Married?" He said in confusion and shock.

Kate nodded with a smile. "Yes, we are."

Castle watched in awe at the way Kate was talking to him, the same dry emotionless way she talked to suspects in the interrogation room. As if the whole situation wasn't good enough, Esposito and Ryan could be heard in the background in fits of laughter. _My boys! _Castle thought with a smile.

Kate stood still watching as a dumbfounded Will tried to form words.

"You know, we'd love to wait for you to gain the ability to form words again, but we have a little boy to find." Esposito said, walking up behind them.

Will nodded quickly and walked past them to get a close look at all of their information. With this short time alone Rick turned to Kate with a smile. "Words cannot describe how much I love you."

Kate smiled and looked around the precinct finding it mostly empty except for Will's people and her team. She leaned over and gently pressed her lips to his, before placing a hand on his chest and pulling away to whisper something into his ear. "No, but actions can." She whispered, slowly moving her hand down his chest and stomach, stopping at his waist to wrap a finger in a belt loop. She tugged on it gently, pulling him closer to her. He reached out to wrap his arms around her waist only to have her pull away and turn to face the murder board, leaving him standing with his breath caught in his throat. _Damn that woman!_ He said to himself.

"So this is all you have? No leads on this Jack man?" Will said in an irritated tone. For people who call themselves New York's Finest, they sure weren't proving themselves.

"We don't have any more than a description." Kate said. "But we aren't really landing on this theory yet. He could've always went off with someone else. Jack could just be a coincidence."

Will turned to Kate. "You of all people should no that there are no coincidences." He said sourly, or has that part of Castle over there rubbed off on you too?" He said sourly.

"Oh, you don't want to know what I've rubbed onto Kate." Rick said quickly.

Kate threw him a glare, she was all for a little bit of fun but that was a little uncalled for at work. Esposito and Ryan however felt differently, both almost on the floor in fits of laughter over what Castle had just said and the look on Will's face.

Just as Will was about to say something, Captain Gates walked out of her office and joined them all by the murder board. "How's it going?" She asked. "Getting anywhere?"

Will turned to her. "They don't have much. We might need to do another canvass."

Gates nodded. "Okay, you and Detective Castle can go."

Kate and her team all exchanged looks. "Uh, I can go with her." Castle said.

"Just because you are married doesn't mean that you have to be with each other every moment of the day, Mr. Castle." She paused. "Soon you'll come to cherish that time."

Will chuckled. "Thank you Ma'am. Detective Beck-Castle and I will go and see what we can dig up…maybe talk to the parents."

Kate heard stifled laughter coming from all three of her boys behind her. She didn't know what was up with Esposito and Ryan today. Sometimes they all acted as children.

"Okay, Agent Sorenson." She turned to leave. "Oh and if my mother stops by you can call her ma'am. You can call me sir." With that 'Iron Gates' left.

Kate couldn't help the small smile. She remembered when those exact words were said in her presence in the past.

Will turned to look at Kate, Castle, Esposito, and Ryan. "She's sure not Montgomery; it's a shame he had to leave you."

"He didn't LEAVE us." Esposito said. "He died...a hero."

Will looked around and noticed the death glares he was receiving from them. He cleared his throat. "Uh, Kate I'll meet you down by your car."

They all watched in silence as he walked off. Kate turned around and gave the boys a look, the 'You better walk away if you don't want to listen to me complain' look. They turned and walked back to their desks. Castle lifted her coat to her shoulders and helped her into her coat. "I can't believe you said that to him, it's completely inappropriate at work."

"Yeah, you have room to talk about being appropriate at work, Ms. I'm going to try to seduce my husband at work." He said with a smirk.

"Touché." She said with a smile as she kissed him quickly on the cheek. "See you later." With that she followed after Will.

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><p><strong>Okay, short! (:<strong>  
><strong>The next chapter will be a long conversation between Will and Kate and we'll be getting back to Alexis' secret and more on the case. (: Oh and any mistakes are mine and are the fault of speed typing! (:<strong>  
><strong>REVIEW! Please?<strong>

_**Follow Me on Twitter- JoWS1024  
>Follow Me on Tumblr- JoWS1024<strong>_


	6. Does He Make You Happy?

**AN: Sorry for the wait, I had some technical difficulties. I had this whole chapter typed and I absolutely loved it…and then my laptop froze and my work was deleted. I yelled at my laptop for a few minutes. SO, I rewrote it…and didn't like it…so then I re-rewrote it.  
>Anyway, I wanted to cry after 47 Seconds. Anyone else?<br>And Monday? Why aren't you here? **

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><p>The elevator doors skidded open as Kate made her way toward the door. She stopped when she saw Will leaning against the passenger side of her car, looking at something in the distance.<p>

She took a deep breath and pushed the door open, causing Will's eyes to focus on her. He gave her a small smile. She just nodded and made her way to her side of the car and climbed inside. Will did the same. After his door was closed, she started the car.

They drove for a few minutes before Will spoke up. "Castle, Kate? Really?"

Kate was surprised by his words. She gave him a look before answering. "Yes Will, _Castle._"

Will shook his head with a sigh. "I just don't understand. The last time I was here, he annoyed you so much. What happened?"

"People changed Will." She paused. "I changed."

Will sat back in his seat. He just couldn't picture Kate with someone else; especially Richard Castle. "Is that why you stopped calling me?"

Kate sighed. Why; why did Gates have to do this to her? "No, Will." She paused. "You had to have noticed that what we had was gone."

"I just don't know what you're doing. The Kate I knew never would've married someone like Castle.

"Well, the Kate you knew isn't me." She paused. "The Kate you knew is a shadow from my past that is long gone. So, you better think long and hard before you make your next move."

Will hadn't realized that they were at the park until Kate was exiting the car. He didn't respond. He followed her in silence.

Kate stared ahead. She was happy to see that Mrs. Johnston and the other kids were still there. She walked toward them with Will behind her. She smiled at the fact that he was being silent.

Before she was close enough to speak to them, Jenna saw her. "Detective Beckett!" She said with a wave.

Kate smiled and waved back at her. "Hi Jenna." She stopped when she was standing in from on Mrs. Johnston, Jenna, Andy, Greg, and their parents. "Hello again," She said, pointing to Will. "This is Agent Sorenson."

"Have you found anything on Matt?" Mrs. Johnston asked hopefully.

Kate shook her head slowly. "Not yet, Mrs. Johnston. We came back to look around and ask some more people for information."

The mother nodded sadly.

"I'm sure my team informed you of our possible suspect?" Kate asked.

She nodded slowly. "None of us have seen him."

Kate nodded. "We're going to look around. Can you all stick around for a little longer?" She asked, looking at the adults surrounding her.

They all nodded and turned to stand under a tree away from them.

When they were out of hearing range, Kate turned to Will. "So, why exactly are we here again?" She asked. "My team did a canvass and so did you; what did you plan on finding?"

Will shrugged. "You didn't really find much to work with?"

"We found a hell of a lot more than you and your team did." She said.

"You know, Kate-"

But before he could finish the sentence, the sound of someone calling Kate's name from behind them, interrupted them; followed by uniforms telling the person to stay back.

Kate recognized the voice and turned to see Alexis standing near the parking lot, her path blocked by a few uniforms.

"Who the hell is that?" Will asked.

"Let her through." Kate told the uniforms, ignoring Will.

Kate watched as Alexis walked past the uniforms and walked quickly to her. "Kate I need to talk to you this is-" She paused, and looked a Will with a confused expression. "Oh hi…I'm sorry I can come back."

"That would be best." Will said irritably.

Kate shook her head. "What is it?" She looked at Will quickly. "Could you give us a minute?" She said giving him the look that said he better say yes.

Will sighed with a nod and walked away from them.

Once he was away, Kate turned to Alexis. "What is it Lex?"

Alexis bit her bottom lip nervously. "It's about Conner." She said slowly.

"The boy you've been seeing."

Alexis nodded.

A million things flooded into Kate, causing her to quickly panic as words rushed from her mouth. "What happened? Are you okay? Did he hurt you? Where is he now? I'll go take care of it-"

"Kate!" Alexis almost yelled. "Calm down, he didn't hurt me…you don't need to 'take care of it.'"

Kate nodded, realizing that she got carried away. "What's up then? You seem a little…off."

Alexis sighed. "I need your opinion on something…"

Kate nodded.

Alexis took a deep breath and looked into her step-mother's eyes, still seeing traces of worry lingering. "Conner asked me to go away to Hawaii with him for a few days."

Kate froze. What! They'd only been on five dates! Hawaii? "Alexis, you've only been on five dates. Isn't this rushing? You shouldn't be running away to the other side of the country with some guy."

"But he isn't just some guy." Alexis said.

Kate was surprised that Alexis seemed to want to go. In all the time she'd known Alexis, she'd never want to do something like that.

"I know that I'm not like this; acting irrational and irresponsible. I've always followed the rules and been smart. I'd like to think that I have enough judgment skills to know what I'm doing, but I just needed to talk to you." She paused. "There's just something about him that I trust. H-he's different. I really want to go."

Kate studied the young girl in front of her. She recognized the look. The same look she herself had had many times in her teenage years. She was blindly in love; blind love had caused her a lot of heartbreak. Kate knew without a doubt that Alexis was smarter than her as a teen but even she couldn't escape her own heart. "Alexis, I know you really like him, but isn't this just a little too soon? Get to know each other here first."

"But I already know him so well! We have so much in common. And he's so sweet and caring and…" She trailed off.

Kate didn't know what to say. A part of her wanted to tell her to follow her heart, but the logical part of her wanted to tell Alexis to stay home. "I just think the smart thing to do would be to stay home."

"You don't trust me?" Alexis asked quickly. Kate was surprised; she didn't mean that in the slightest bit.

"Lex, of course I trust you."

"You don't trust him." She paused, giving Kate an opportunity to deny the fact. When she didn't, Alexis continued. "You have to meet him, Kate. After you meet him I know you'll change your mind."

Kate sighed. She knew she had no other choice. "When are you supposed to leave? We're working a really important case."

"We're supposed to leave in two days." She paused. "How about I bring him for dinner tomorrow?" Alexis suggested with hopeful eyes.

"Okay, but your Dad needs to know before you guys come over so he doesn't freak out as much as he already will."

"Will you tell him?" Alexis asked.

"Why can't you?"

"Please Kate, it'll just be easier coming from you. He's going to freak out when he finds out that Conner is twenty-six."

Kate sighed with a nod. "You owe me."

Alexis smiled and hugged her stepmother. "I know I do."

She pulled away and Kate noticed Will watching them impatiently. Alexis followed her gaze until she spotted Will.

"Who's that?" She asked.

"Agent Will Sorenson."

"Is there a reason I'm receiving the death glare?" Alexis asked with a small giggle.

Kate shrugged. "He probably pieced together who you are. He's not a big fan of your father."

Alexis gave Kate a confused look. "Why?"

"Will and I used to date a while back." She paused. "Will is having a hard time figuring out why 'the Kate he knew' would marry Richard Castle."

Alexis made a mental note to ask her more about that later. "Why is he here?"

"Federal agents are automatically called in for child abductions." Kate said.

"You guys are working a kids' case?"

Kate nodded. "Yeah."

"Any leads?"

"Just one…some guy that the kids talk to in the park, but the description wasn't very helpful."

"Did you have the kids talk to a sketch artist?" Alexis asked.

Kate felt like an idiot. She was supposed to be the cop; the homicide detective. How could she have not had them talk to a sketch artist! "Alexis, thank you, I'll call you later tonight." She said, beginning to walk toward Will. Alexis followed closely behind her. "But I need to get back to the case."

Alexis nodded. "Okay, thanks Kate; for everything." She paused. "I'll call you later."

With that, Alexis was heading to her car and Kate was reunited with Will.

"Was that Castle's kid?" Will asked.

Kate nodded. "Yeah, sorry for that. She had something she needed to talk to me about."

Will nodded. "Is she immature and bothersome like her father?"

Kate stared at him in disbelief. Why was he acting like this? They hadn't talked in years! Did he expect her to buy some cats and stay single for the rest of her life? "Will, I think you forget that you are talking about my husband," She said harshly. "And, Alexis is sweet and kind like her father, but she's also very mature and incredibly smart."

Will looked at her angry expression and at the way she was defending him. Was she really that in love with him? Did she really care so much about his daughter, who seemed to adore Kate just as much? If he couldn't be with Kate, he should want her to be happy shouldn't he?

Kate turned and began to walk in the direction of the kids. "Alexis reminded me that I need to see if the kids could provide a sketch of 'Jack' for us." She paused. "That could really help us." She heard Will walking behind her.

Will watched as she talked with the parents and kids, they obviously agreed because there was nodding and then Kate turned toward him.

"They're meeting us at the twelfth." Kate said, leading them back to her car.

They both hopped in, and drove off to the precinct. They sat in silence. Kate almost forgot that he was there until she heard his voice.

"Are you happy?"

Kate was surprised by his question. She turned her head to look at him. "What?"

"Does he make you happy; are you happy?" He asked.

Kate nodded slowly. "Yes, he does…I am; very happy."

"Okay."

* * *

><p><strong>In the next chapter, I think this case is going to really take off. I'll try to update tomorrow but no promises. My break begins on Friday so I'll defiantly update is during the break!<strong>

**Please leave a review! They make me so happy!**

_**Follow Me on Twitter: JoWS1024  
><strong>**Follow Me on Tumblr: jows1024**_


	7. Tell Me!

**AN: Thanks for the reviews guys! X) Sorry for the wait! Oh and did anyone see the Limey? I literally wanted to crawl inside the TV, slap Castle and then yell at Beckett to tell him how she feels. GAH! *breathe in breathe out* Sorry for my outburst. (;  
><strong>**Disclaimer: I don't own Castle…because honestly Beckett does. ;) Oh and I guess AWM owns all of them. So the point is I don't…okay?  
><strong>**Happy reading! :D**

* * *

><p>She didn't understand. How? How could no one recognize the sketch? They'd shown it to people in each child's neighborhood and the park. Not a single person recognized him. She even made each child provide a separate sketch; each came out almost identical.<p>

Kate stood back and stared at the board. Nothing; nothing at all. The families all came back clean, no sex offenders in the area. No witnesses at the park.

She'd never felt so completely clueless as she stared at the board with no answers what so ever.

Rick looked back and forth from the board to Kate. They had been at the precinct for hours. It was nearing 1 a.m., but everyone refused to stay home. They all accepted the fact that they weren't leaving until Matthew was found.  
>He watched as she stared at the board, that look of complete focus that she often wore was plastered on her face. Even through that, he could see how exhausted she was; how exhausted they all were. He had made so many coffee trips in the last two hours that he had lost count.<p>

He felt eyes on him and looked up to see Will staring at them. He looked angry, but at the same time he didn't. He didn't really know how to explain it.

A yawn from Kate brought his attention back to her.

"Tired?" Rick asked with a chuckle.

"Exhausted." She said with a smile.

"More coffee?"

Kate shook her head. "No, I'm actually sick of coffee." She paused. "I never thought I'd hear those words come out of my mouth."

"Me either." Rick said. "Do you want anything? Energy drink? Food? I'll go get it."

"Trying to escape, Castle?" She said with a smirk.

"If Castle wanted to escape he'd have done long before now." Esposito said, joining them from his desk.

Kate laughed and looked around Ryan and Esposito's desk. "Where's Ryan?"

"Telling Jenny goodnight." Esposito said. "He's been on the phone for over an hour. I'm afraid to interrupt." He said with a laugh.

"Eh, just leave him." Kate said. "It's not like we're busting this case wide open right now anyway. You can go call Lanie if you want." She offered.

"No, she's out with her sister."

Kate smiled with a nod, glancing at her husband to see the same grin on his face. They were happy that their friends had gotten back together. It was actually their plan. They forced them to dance together at the wedding, after that they talked and here they are.

"You know," Will said, stepping toward them, pulling Kate from her thoughts. "You can all head home. My team and I can handle this."

The two detectives and the writer all looked at each other, silently coming up with an answer. "No, we're staying here." Kate said.

Will shook his head. "You've all done your part. I'd like you to go get some rest. You're useless running on coffee and no sleep." He paused. "Oh course if you have a problem with that I can take it up with Captain Gates."

They all looked around at each other in disbelief. They couldn't believe he had just said that.

Kate sighed. "Fine, but call us if ANYTHING is found."

Will nodded.

Kate and Rick gathered their things. Rick helped Kate into her coat as Esposito went to get Ryan. Kate button up her coat and turned to leave with Rick right behind her.

She stopped and looked at Castle. "You can go on over to the elevator." She said.

Rick gave her a confused look but nodded.

Kate turned to Will. "Will I know you're smart enough to know that ordering me around is never a good thing." She said in a low whisper. "You may be an FBI agent, but you're still in my city. Remember that before you say anything else."

With that, she left the shocked Will and joined her husband inside the elevator. As the doors closed she looked over to see her husband smirking at her.

"You heard that?" She asked.

Rick nodded. "You're cute when you're mad."

Kate rolled her eyes. "Well then I must look freaking adorable right now."

* * *

><p>As Kate swerved through the late night NYC traffic she thought about her conversation with Alexis. She needed to talk to Rick, to tell him about his daughter. It had been a long day and all she wanted to do was to crawl in bed with him and sleep. But that couldn't happen and she knew it.<p>

"So," Rick said, breaking the silence. "I heard Will complaining that 'Castle's daughter' rudely interrupted and disturbed your canvassing." He said with a smile.

Kate laughed. "Oh yes, never in my life have I been so rudely disturbed." She said sarcastically. "She actually helped; I had forgotten all about getting a sketch from the kids. She suggested it."

"So, why was she there?"

"Oh," Kate said. "No reason…just girl talk."

"Kate, Alexis would never both you at work for 'girl talk.' Is this the same thing from this morning?" He asked frantically. "Why won't you tell me?"

Kate sighed. "Do you trust me with Alexis, Rick?"

"Yeah, of course I do Kate; it's just that she's _our_ daughter. I'd like to know what's going on in her life too."

Kate froze. Did he just say that she was their daughter? Not his but theirs? "Our daughter?"

Rick obviously hadn't realized what he'd said. "Well, yeah, I mean, you're the closest thing to a mother she's ever had. She's yours and you know it."

Kate smiled. He was right.

They had arrived at the loft and Kate decided she'd tell him when they got inside. She climbed from the car and met him by the door. She grabbed his hand gently. "C'mon, I'll tell you all about it when we get inside."

Castle all but sprinted to the elevator, dragging her with him. He bounced around impatiently in the elevator until it finally reached their floor. He fumbled around with key and finally pushed the door open, pulling her inside with him. He shut the door and threw his keys in his pocket.

"Tell me." He said, out of breath.

Kate just stared at him. "Oh my God, Rick…" She said, taking off her heels and coat.

"Tell me." He practically whined.

She sighed. "I wasn't lying earlier, you know. It was girl talk." She said, leading him through his office and into their room. She sat down on the bed and patted the spot next to her.

Rick sat down next to her. "You're making me nervous."

Kate chuckled. "It's nothing really." She paused. "Alexis just met this new boy…"

"Oh, I get it…but why wouldn't she tell me? She's always been open about her boyfriends."

"Well, he's a little different." Kate said.

A millions possibilities flooded into his mind; not one of them was good. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, well he's a little older than him."

"Oh." Castle said, a smile forming on his face. "God, it's not a big deal. You're acting like I was going to freak…"

"He's twenty-six."

Rick stared at her. Twenty-six? WHAT? "Kate! Why would you ever let this happen!"

"It's only a few years difference." Kate said. "And have you not forgotten how many years older than me you are?"

Rick rolled his eyes. "We're different."

"How so?"

Rick took a deep breath and sighed as he was now standing and staring down into the slightly annoyed face of his wife. "We're adults. She's just a kid."

"Honey," Kate said, grabbing his hand and pulling him down to sit next to her. _Did I just call him honey?_ "Alexis is the most responsible, smart, and mature young girls I've ever met. Honestly, she's more of an adult than we are sometimes."

Rick only smiled.

"I wouldn't have let her pursue this any farther if I had detected any type of danger. Alexis has great judgment…and from what she's told me about him, he sounds like a great guy."

Rick sighed. "What did she tell you about him?"

Kate smiled. She could still see the worry on his face, but also knew it was fading. "Well, his name is Conner. He's twenty-six…a cardiologist. They've only been on a few dates; five to be exact." She paused, thinking of other details. "Oh! He's Jamie's brother."

"Jamie? Alexis' roommate? " He paused. "The one that came over for dinner a few months ago?"

Kate nodded. "Yes, so see? There isn't anything to worry about."

Rick sighed. "I just can't believe you were so cool about it."

"Pfft. Rick your lack of faith in my ability to be cool and calm hurts me." She paused. "But I make her text me right before she goes out with him, when she gets back to her dorm, and I ran a background test." She smiled.

Rick laughed and leaned in to kiss her on the lips. "There's my rush-to-the-worst-case-scenario wife." He smiled. "Thank you."

Kate pulled away from the kiss. "Don't thank me yet; I'm not done." She watched as a wave of curiosity and panic ran across him face.

"What?"  
>"Conner wants Alexis to go on vacation with him."<p>

"What!" Castle yelled, standing from the bed. "And you told her she could! Kate what's wrong with you!"

Kate stood from the bed. "Hey! Calm-hey, Rick…HEY!" She yelled, causing his pacing and rambling to stop. "I didn't say she could go."

Rick stopped and looked at her, calming a bit. "What did you tell her?"

"I told her that the smart thing to do would be to stay home. But then she started gushing about him and asked if she could bring him for dinner tomorrow night so that we could meet him." Kate said. "She swears that after we meet him we'll change our minds."

"What do you think?"

"I think we should wait to judge him until we actually meet him."

Rick nodded and stood to walk in the bathroom. He began undressing and stepped in the shower. He turned the shower on and let the hot water rain down on him. Twenty-six? _Oh Alexis I hope you know what you're doing. _

Kate sat alone on the bed. Why had he just left like that? He wasn't mad at her was he? She sighed and walked into the bathroom. She heard the water running and saw steam escape from the top of the shower. She smiled as she quickly discarded her clothes, throwing them in a pile with hers. She slowly and quietly stepped in with him.

He jumped a little at the sight of her, not expecting to see her in the shower with him. "Hey." He smiled.

She smiled back at him. "You're not mad at me are you?"

Rick smiled and reached out to pull her to him, pulling her under the running water. "Why would I be mad at you?"

"I let your only daughter run off with some twenty-six year old man."

Rick took a deep breath, moving them both from underneath the water that was obstructing his vision of her. "I trust you. If you let her go, you must not of sensed any type of danger."

Kate smiled and stood on her toes to kiss him. He kissed back, wrapping an arm around her waist. Kate placed a hand on his chest and the other on his right cheek. He deepened the kiss as she moaned into his mouth.

They broke the kiss for only a second to get air before Rick had her pushed up against the shower wall, kissing her fiercely. "I love you." He whispered into her ear.

"I love you, too." She answered back as he detached his mouth from hers to leave a trail of kisses from her jaw to her neck.

* * *

><p><strong>Haha, and because I'm mean I'll end it there.<br>****Okay, so what did you think? Leave a review please? Oh and this is random, but if you have a Tumblr and you'd like me to follow leave your Tumblr name in a review; always lookin' for new Castle blogs to follow. :D  
><em>Follow me on Tumblr: JoWS1024<em>**


	8. Live TV?

**AN: Sorry for the wait!**

* * *

><p>Rick smiled at the sleeping face of his wife. She was lying next to him and facing him with a small smile on her face. She was snuggled into his side, tucked deeply in the covers, shielding her naked body from the slight chill in the air.<p>

He reached out to brush a few loose strands of hair from her face. He glanced over at the clock; 9:45 a.m. She usually didn't sleep this late. But the case and…other activities didn't let them fall asleep until well past three in the morning.

He leaned in a kissed her gently on the forehead before slowly removing his arm from underneath her. He sat up slowly and pushed the covers back. He grabbed a pair of boxer shorts and an old t-shirt and walked through his office and into the kitchen.

He started the coffee pot and stared out the window. Twenty-six? Alexis was just a kid…or she used to be. It's hard to think of your daughter as an adult, especially for Richard Castle. But, Kate thought she'd be okay, and Kate would never let Alexis pursue anything if she sensed an ounce of danger.

His phone ringing brought his attention away from the window and his daughter. It must be the boys or Sorenson.

"Hello?" He asked.

…

Kate kept her eyes closed as she rolled over toward her husband. When she didn't feel Castle's chest against her, she opened her eyes to see his side of the bed empty. Before she could even wonder where he went, the smell of coffee overwhelmed her. She pushed the covers off of her and glanced down at her naked body. She was a little surprised by the amount of marks all down her body. Things had gotten…rough the previous night.

She chuckled lightly as she stood to grab some clothes.

She slipped Rick's batman t-shirt over her head and pulled on the same shorts she had on the day before.

She walked barefoot through the office and into the living room where her husband's voice could he heard.

"Yeah, Paula, I know…we just have a big case going on right now…I know I know…She's not going to want to…okay…fine I'll talk to her. Okay, bye."

Kate watched him from behind. She could tell just from his posture that he didn't like what Paula had said. She was probably sending him away for a book tour; _Heating Up_ was just released. They had just gone to the book release party a week ago.

She smiled as she slowly walked up behind him, wrapping her arms around his stomach to lay her head on his back.

He jumped when he felt her touch.  
>"What's wrong?" She asked.<p>

Rick pulled out of the embrace and turned to face her. He pulled her into a tight hug. She laid her head down on his chest. Without her heels, she was much shorter than him.

He lowered his head to place a soft kiss on her hair. "You should be sleeping. You're tired and we were up late last night."

Kate smiled. "Rick, what's wrong? Stop trying to change the subject."

Rick sighed. "Paula called."

"How long are you going to be gone?" Kate asked. She couldn't hide the evident disappointment. She hated when he left on book tours. The loft always seemed empty. Martha was barely home and Alexis was at college.

Rick chuckled. "You miss me don't you? Admit it."

Kate rolled her eyes. "Yes, I do miss you. I'm not used to single life anymore. I'm dependent on your presence and it sickens me."

Rick laughed and kissed her forehead. "Actually, Paula wanted me to talk to you about something different than a book tour; something that would bring even more publicity."

Kate pulled away from the embrace and looked up at him. "Which is?"

Rick walked over to the counter and grabbed them each a cup of coffee before directing her to the couch. He sat down followed by her who sat on the corner of the couch and draped her legs over his.

"Okay, now what did Paula say?"

"Have you seen that late-night show, with that Reed Edwards guy?"

"Yeah," Kate said. "Who hasn't?"

"Well, next week a spot opened up on his show because that Stana Katic lady cancelled at the last moment, so Paula got us on the show."  
>Kate smiled. "Oh, that's great...wait, us?"<p>

"Yeah…that's what I'm supposed to talk to you about." He paused. "The show wants both of us there."

Kate stared at him for a second. He had to be joking. "Rick, yeah right. Why would they want me there?"

"You don't get it do you?" He asked. "You ARE Nikki Heat! Everyone wants to know about you; know about us."

"Why?" She asked. Why would they want to know about her? "Doesn't the book tell enough?"

Rick laughed. "You know that there is a lot of differences between you and Nikki. And besides, ever since we got married, everyone wants to know about US, not just me." He paused. "People have been trying to information about you since _Heat Wave_ came out."

Kate thought about it. A late night show? Her? No. "I don't know, Rick. Live TV?"

"You'd be fine. You're great under pressure."

Kate looked into the face of her husband and could see how much he wanted this; how much it meant to him. "You really want to do this don't you?"  
>Rick smiled and pulled her closer to him. "Yeah, but if it's something you really don't want to do, we don't have to."<p>

Kate sighed. "What if I say something wrong?"

"Like what?" He chuckled.  
>Kate shrugged with a sigh.<p>

"Do I sense a little bit of fright coming from my fearless detective?"

Kate looked up at him with a smirk. "Shut up or I won't do it."

"So, you're saying you'll do it?"

Kate rolled her eyes. "Yes, I'll do it. As long as you promise not to say anything…too personal." She said, sitting up on her knees and looking him in the eyes.

"Like what?" He said, pulling her down into his lap.

She smiled and leaned in close to him so that their lips were only a centimeter apart. "Like if you talk about anything that happened last night, I will kill you."

"Oh," He said, kissing her gently. "I can't talk about what we did in the shower," He kissed her again. "Or on the bed."

"Or on the floor after we fell off of the bed." Kate said, leaning in and kissing him. It wasn't as brief as Rick's. One of her arms slithered around his neck while her other hand stayed on his cheek.

Rick pulled her as close as humanly possible to him.

The happy couple was interrupted as fast as they had began, by the ringing of the home phone. Kate pulled away and gave her husband a look. No one called their home phone. Kate climbed off of Rick's lap and he made his way to the phone.

"Hello? This is the Castle residence." He said, giving Kate a smile.

Kate rolled her eyes at the cheesy grin on his face. She sipped her coffee and watched as Rick nodded and hung up.

"Who was that?" She asked when he hung up.

"It was Ryan. He and Esposito are heading into the precinct now."

"Did Will call them?" Kate asked, standing from the couch to put her coffee cup in the sink.

Rick shook his head. "No, but they figured you'd want to get in there."

Kate nodded. "Yeah, I do. We need to find Matthew soon." She paused. "I'm going to throw some clothes on and we can get going."

The Castles quickly and silently moved around the loft getting ready for the day. Within fifteen minutes they were out the door and heading downstairs for Kate's Crown Vic.

* * *

><p><strong>Honestly, so much crap is going on in this story. The case, Alexis' boy drama, and now the talk show…but there's a point to it all. I promise. What did you think? Review? Please?<strong>


	9. We're Going to Have Fun With This

**AN: Sorry for the really long wait. School was getting in the way. :P BUT, with summer starting I'll update a lot more frequently. So enjoy and don't forget to review! (:**

* * *

><p>As Kate parked the Crown Vic in its normal spot, the Castles noticed Ryan and Esposito walking up the steps of the precinct.<p>

"Hey guys!" Rick said, running over to catch up with them as Kate was still opening her car door.

Ryan and Esposito turned to see Castle making his way towards them as Beckett emerged sleepily from the car.

"I'm surprised Beckks didn't make you come in sooner." Esposito said.

Rick shook his head. "She's really tired. We didn't get to sleep until around three or four." He smirked.

"But you guys left at the same time we did; at one." Ryan said. "Why didn't you guys get to sleep until three?"

Esposito shook his head at his partner. "Really bro? You're a married man and you still have no idea what they were doing?"

Ryan looked at him until it clicked. He turned and gave Castle a grimace. "Ew."

"Ew what?" Kate asked, joining them.

"Nothing." All three men said in unison.

Kate eyed them suspiciously before rolling her eyes.

Rick noticed the giggles that were bubbling inside the boys and quickly grabbed Kate's hand and practically pulled her inside. She'd be beyond pissed if she found out that he'd told the boys that they had sex.

Again, he didn't understand the big problem. Yeah, they were like family, but everyone had sex. They knew that Ryan and Jenny had sex and they knew that Esposito and Lanie had sex. He just didn't see what was so embarrassing.

"Why are you so eager to get inside?" Kate asked, pulling him from his thoughts.

"Uh, racing Ryan and Espo." He lied.

She rolled her eyes. "Always the nine year old." She said with a smirk as the elevator dinged.

Castle smiled at her as his hand wandered to the small of her back to guide her inside the elevator. "The nine year old that you love."

Kate smiled and pressed the elevator button. "Yes Rick, although you annoy the hell out of me sometimes, I love you." She said as the elevator doors skidded shut.

Rick smiled and leaned in to kiss her cheek. Kate however, had a different idea. Just as his lips were about to touch her cheek, she turned her head and captured his lips in a kiss.

She moved her hands up to cradle his face as his arms slithered around her waist to pull her close to him. He moaned as he parted his lips eagerly for her.  
>She smiled into his mouth when she heard the elevator ding, signaling their arrival. She pulled away quickly from him, catching her breath. She reached up and wiped away the smudge of her lipstick from his face.<br>He stared at her with ragged breath. She laughed at the dumbfounded look on his face. "Tease." He muttered.

* * *

><p>Back downstairs, Esposito turned to look at his partner with a sly grin. "We're going to have fun with this."<p>

"Oh yeah." Ryan smirked as they stepped into the elevator.

* * *

><p>"Sorenson here yet?" Kate asked, shedding her jacket as she approached her desk with Castle trailing behind. He helped her out of her coat and then shook his off.<br>"I'll go get us some coffee." Castle said, disappearing into the break room.

Kate nodded and then turned back to the uniform she had asked.  
>The young woman shook her head. "No, he left about an hour ago."<p>

"Did he say where he was going?"

The woman shook her head again.

"Okay thanks." She said with a smile.

Kate walked over to the board. She scanned it with her eyes seeing if anything had been changed. Nothing had. Nothing had been found.

She sighed and turned to see Ryan and Esposito settling into their desks. "Hey Ryan, did you get a chance to do that background on the family?"

"Uh, yeah." Ryan said, pulling a piece of paper from the large stack on his desk. "They're clean." He said. "I went over their last purchases, savings, everything. They seem like a nice healthy family."

"Did you talk to their neighbors?" She asked.

Ryan nodded. "Yeah, everyone on their floor said that they seemed happy. Whenever Mr. Johnston was home they never heard any arguing or anything."

Kate nodded. "That's what I thought. I trust the mother."

"What about the father?" Rick said, joining them and handing Kate her coffee. She smiled in thanks.  
>"He's in Afghanistan." Esposito answered.<p>

"Just because he's in Afghanistan doesn't mean he's not involved. He could've sent letters to someone."

Rick looked around at the looks he was receiving from the three detectives. "Okay, well it's the only lead we have besides 'Jack'."

Kate sighed. He was right. "We need to figure out who Jack is first. That's the only way we're going to be able to get anywhere."

"But what if he isn't even relevant?" Castle asked.

"Right now, he's all we have. A creepy man in the park who likes to hand out candy to little kids. Unfortunately, in the world we live in, he's most likely our kidnapper." She waited for one of them to object, but when no one did, she went on. "Okay, so I was thinking, Jack could stand for John. Ryan, run all Johns around where each child lives."

"We've already shown the sketch around and no one has recognized him." Esposito said.

"Espo, this guy could be wearing a disguise around the kids...or he could just be a loner." She paused. "We need to run the name."

They all nodded.  
>"And Ryan, run that name everywhere. Neighborhoods around where each child lives. Especially anyone is the Johnston's past. Coworkers. Old bosses. Old friends. Hell, go back to their high school yearbooks if you have to. We <em>need<em> to find this guy. "

"On it." Ryan said.

* * *

><p>Silence had overcome the precinct in the two hours Kate, Castle, Ryan, and Esposito had been there. Kate and Castle sat at her desk reading over evidence as Ryan and Esposito searched for 'Jack'.<p>

Esposito turned and scooted quietly in his chair over to Ryan's desk. "Hey," Esposito said. "Look over at Beckett."

Ryan looked up from his computer and over at Kate who was quietly reading over a piece of paper. "What am I looking at?" Ryan asked.

"The scarf." Esposito said, nodding toward her again. "Now, why would she be wearing a scarf on a beautiful warm day like today?" He asked sarcastically.

Ryan smiled at his friend.

"Yo Beckett!" Esposito said.

Kate's eyes quickly shifted to his. "You guys find something?"

"No," Ryan said. "Just wanted to mention how nice the scarf looks on you."

Kate looked down at her navy blue scarf and then looked over to catch the confused look of her husband. "Uh…thanks guys?" She said, looking back down at her paper.

"I was just thinking though," Esposito said, causing her to look up from her paper again. "Isn't it a little warm for that? It's like 70 degrees out."

Kate gave them both a confused look. "Guys, it's a scarf. Get back to work."

They nodded and looked back at Ryan's computer for a moment. When they noticed that they're boss had turned to her paper, they shared a quick look before Ryan spoke again. "What is that? Silk? Wool?"

"Ryan!" Kate said, dropping the paper and glaring at him. "It's a _scarf!_"

"I was just thinking that it must be comfortable if you're wearing it in such warm weather." Esposito added.

"Unless you're wearing it for another reason…" Ryan began.

"Maybe to cover something up." Esposito finished.

They held back their laughter at the embarrassed look on Kate's face. "I. Just. Like. Scarves." She growled. "Now back to work. _Now_."

Castle shook his head. He was going to kill them.

* * *

><p><strong>So, what did you think? Love it? Hate it? Let me know! (:<strong>

**In the next few chapters we'll be getting more into the case, Alexis' boyfriend, and the TV interview.  
>Kind of short. The next one should be longer.<strong>

**Follow Me on Tumblr: jows1024**


	10. John Dawson

**AN: It's been awhile my beautiful readers! I know I'm the worst person at updating so, I appreciate that you all stick by for this story. I means a lot. (:**

* * *

><p>The precinct was quiet as Castle and Beckett read over witness and canc=vassing reports and the boys ran searches on the 'Jacks'. Kate sighed, getting more worried as every minute went by. Time was ticking and this little boy's life rested in their hands. They needed something. They needed somthing quick.<p>

"Beckett!" Ryan said, from his desk, pulling the detective from her thoughts.

She didn't even look up at him. Their teasing had grown annoying. "I swear to God Ryan if this is about my damn scarf…"

"No no!" He interrupted. "I got a hit on 'Jack'."

Castle and Beckett shared a look of hope before quickly made their way to his desk while Esposito swiveled around in his chair to stare at his partner.

"Whatcha got?" Kate asked.

"John, or Jack Dawson. Male, late thirties; lives on the third floor of the apartment that the Johnston's live in." Ryan said. "And get this, three months ago Mr. Dawson's wife left him and took their three children with her."

"So," Castle began. "John looses his kids so the Johnstons should loose theirs too." He said, looking back and forth between the three detectives.

"If he has Matt, there's a really good chance that he is unharmed." Ryan said. "If John took Matt because he missed his kids then he wouldn't hurt him."

"Do we have any way to tie John to the Johnstons?" Kate asked. "They may not even know each other. I don't know anyone in our apartment building except the old woman who lives next door who always wants to stop and chat in the elevator and the doorman." She said.

"Well, no." Castle said. "But it's all we've got…"

"You're right." Kate interrupted. "Let's get over there. We need to find Matthew."

* * *

><p>"So, I never got to ask you," Castle said, as Kate pressed on the gas and pulled the Crown Vic out into traffic. "How'd your car ride with Sorenson go yesterday?" He asked, with playful humor in his eyes.<p>

Kate shot a mischievous grin in his direction. "Oh, a lot of kissing Castle." She said sarcastically. "I even had to pull over for a little bit."

"And I missed it?" He joked.

Kate smiled. "Yeah, and it was pretty hot too."

"Ha. Ha." He said. "Very funny, Kate."

"I thought so." She said, smiling at him.

He couldn't help but smile back. "But seriously, how'd it go?" He asked. He never got the chance to ask last night.

Kate sighed. "He's just surprised I'm with you." She said. "He said that the Kate he knew wouldn't marry you and that the last time he was here I hated you." She said, rolling her eyes.

Rick smiled. "You didn't _hate_ me."

"No, but I disliked you very much." She lied. She'd never admit that she was one of, and still is, his biggest fans.

"Liar." Castle muttered, poking her gently on the arm. "You had a little crush on your favorite writer back then, whether you'll admit it or not."

Kate rolled her eyes with a grin.

"What else did he say?" Castle asked.

Kate hesitated for a minute before speaking up. "He asked me if you made me happy." She said a little quietly. "Why would he ask me like that?"

Rick shrugged. "You guys were together for awhile," He said. "He probably just wants to know that you're happy." Rick said.

Kate thought about it. Her and Will had really cared about each other. She really liked him…and if he wasn't such a jerk she'd want to be friends with him. "That actually…sweet of him."

Castle nodded. "I'm actually close to liking him a bit..."

Kate grinned. "He also called you immature and bothersome."

"Damn," Castle said. "So close."

Kate laughed and pulled into a parking space outside the building. She waited until she saw Ryan and Esposito park next to her before she shut the car off. She quickly glanced at the building and prayed to God that they found an alive and healthy Mathew in there.

"Coming?" Castle said, stepping out of the car.

She nodded and exited the car. She and Castle met up with the boys in the lobby as they headed upstairs. They took the stairs and made it to the third floor in no time. They all kept their weapons away, not having any reason yet to take them out.

Kate looked at her team to see that they were ready for her to knock, when she knew they were, she lifted her hand to knock on the door. "Mr. Dawson! NYPD open up please!"

They heard the movement of feet shuffling and then a muffled "Coming." Come from inside the apartment and before Kate could knock again, the door swung open to reveal a man about six feet tall, muscular, with dark hair, brown eyes, and a clean shaven face. He looks nothing like the lanky mustache-clad man the kids had given a description of. The bathrobe and tasseled hair shows that they have woken him up.

"Can I help you?" He asked, rubbing a hand down his face. "I just got back to sleep."

"We're sorry to disturb you Mr. Dawson," Kate said. "But we were wondering if you knew the Johnston family?"

"Uh, Yeah." He said, waking up fully. "Him and I and a few other guys play poker together whenever he's home. We've gone golfing a few times too." He said. "Don't you cops talk to each other? I was just woken up about and hour and a half ago and gave this whole story."

Kate and Castle shared a confused look. "Another cop was here?" Kate asked.

"Yeah," John said. "And before you ask, I was at work at Dr. Carlson's Veterinary Office between nine and eleven a.m. yesterday." He said irritably. "Not to be rude, but if this is all, I have work in a few hours and I'd like some sleep."

Kate nodded. "Of course, thank you…" She paused. "Who was the cop who was here?"

John thought about it for second. "Started with an 'S'…"

"Sorenson?" All four said in unison.

"That's it!" He said. "Sorenson."

Kate couldn't believe it. He found this lead and didn't call her; didn't call any of them. Who the hell cares if he's an FBI agent? When she gets a hold of him…

"Thank you, Mr. Dawson." Kate said.

"You're welcome." He paused. "That's a really nice scarf by the way." He said before shutting the door.

The boys burst into uncontrollable fits of laughter while muttering something about him being the best suspect they've ever had.

Their laughs continued until they made it outside while Kate is seething. Not only did Sorenson come in and take over her case, he didn't call her about the lead.

Castle stared at her. He knew better than to speak when she was this angry. No need to get his head bit off when she wasn't mad at him.

The boys however, had noticed their fuming boss and looked over at her. "You okay Becks? Esposito asked.

"Find Sorenson. She said. "Tell him to get his ass to the precinct." She barked, walking over and climbing into the Crown Vic.

Esposito and Ryan shared a look before glancing at Castle.

"He didn't call her." Castle said. "He knows how she is about kids' cases and he still didn't call."

"I would_ not _want to be him right now." Ryan said, looking over at her angrily looking out the window. "She looks like she could shoot him"

"She might if she gets the chance." Castle said.

Esposito laughed. "This should be good. I never really liked the guy."

Just when Castle was about to answer, Kate yelled for him "Castle! _Come on_!" She said angrily.

Ryan and Esposito shot him amused looks.

"Good luck bro." Esposito said.

* * *

><p><strong>This was pretty short. But it's been a while. And it's an update. Right? *sigh* I know I'm a terrible updater-er. I still can't thank you guys enough for sticking by this. Review if you get want. (:<strong>

_**Follow Me on Tumblr: it-hurts-to-think**_


	11. Mr Good Lookin' is Cookin'

**AN: I'm a terrible person. I'm so sorry about how long this has been. If it makes you feel any better, I've got the rest of this story outlined so now updates shouldn't take as long. :P**

* * *

><p>Ryan looked up from his computer to see Will Sorenson walking toward him. He couldn't help the small laugh that arose from him. Poor guy had no idea the hell that was about to come down on him.<p>

Ryan nudged his partner and nodded toward Will. Esposito gave him a knowing grin.

"Yo, Sorenson!" Esposito said. "Beckett's looking for you."

Before Sorenson had a chance to reply Kate and Castle had emerged from the break room. Kate stalked toward him like a lion, a glare on her face. Castle snickered behind her. _This_ was going to be great.

Will lost the smile on his face when he saw the look he was receiving from his ex. Oh God. This wasn't going to be good. He threw on a smile and walked up toward her. "Hey Kate."

"What the _hell_ did you think you were doing?" Kate asked loudly. "You should have called the minute you got the lead about John Dawson!"

Sorenson took a step back. "It wasn't that big of a lead. No big deal." He said calmly, hoping his calm demeanor would rub off on the female detective.

"Not a big-" She stopped to look back at Castle and the boys who wiped the grins away from their faces at her glare. "Not a big deal? He was the main suspect at the time, Will! How can you say that that's not a big lead!"

"Kate, I'm sorry, really, I didn't think that it was that big of a deal."

Kate shook her head and ran a hand through her hair. "Big deal or not you know how I feel about kids' cases. You should have called the second you got a lead."

Will was really beginning to get annoyed. Whether it was the fact that a detective was yelling at him, an FBI agent in the middle of the precinct or the fact that her husband and two other clowns were laughing at the whole situation he didn't know. "You know Detective Beckett, if you want to be informed of every single little lead then maybe you shouldn't go running home with your husband-"

"You're the one who made us leave!" Kate yelled.

Will opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by Captain Gates.

"Detective Beckett!" Gates said in a stern voice.

Kate took a deep breath before turning to face her captain. "Sir?"

"What's going on?"

"Will, er, Agent Sorenson didn't notify me or anyone on my team when he received a very important lead." Kate explained.

"And that was reason to cause such commotion in the middle of the precinct?" She asked angrily.

"Uh, no sir. I'm sorry I was just-"

"I want you to go home. You and Mr. Castle both. Cool off. Get some rest. Be back tomorrow first thing in the morning."

Castle and the boys, who had lost all signs of amusement on their faces the moment the captain exited her office were now staring with wide eyes.

"No, sir, it's fine. I don't need to cool off. I'll be fine." Kate all but pleaded.

"That was an order detective." And with that, Captain Gates returned to her office.

The whole precinct was now quiet with all eyes on Kate.

Kate clenched her teeth and fought back the urge to follow Captain Gates into her office and start screaming at her. She took a deep breath and turned to her husband who was standing next to the boys with wide eyes. "Come on Castle." She said. "Let's go home."

* * *

><p>Castle watched from the passenger's seat as Kate gripped the wheel tightly in her hands, her knuckles turning white. Her eyes stayed focused on the road as her jaw clenched tightly.<p>

"Kate,-"

"How could he do this to me?" Kate asked, breaking her silence. "He of all people should know how I feel about kids' cases."

Castle nodded, not really sure of what to say. "I know."

"And then Gates sends us home?" She said, making a sharp turn. "There is a missing child out there and she's sending detectives home because we got in a little disagreement?"

Castle really didn't know what to say. She was right. Gates made a bad judgment call. She needed all hands on deck for this and she just sent her best detective home.

"Castle what if something happens to Matthew because of this? I'm not there for this case; for him." She said quietly.

Castle shook his head. "Nothing is going to happen. Matt is going to be fine."

"How can you be so sure?" She asked, parking the car in front of the apartment building.

Castle climbed from the car and met Kate on the sidewalk to walk toward their building. They smiled at the doorman and headed inside. "Because you're working this case. And yeah, you're not there right now but Esposito and Ryan are. Gates it there. And Will, even though you're mad at him right now, you know he's going to do everything he can to bring Matt home safely." He said as they climbed inside the elevator. "My point is that if you're gone for one evening, they're going to have your back in this."

Kate took in what her husband said. He was right. The boys, Gates, and Sorenson would do everything in their power to make sure that Matt is okay.

Kate nodded. "You're right."

Castle smiled and reached for her hand. "And now we have more time to work on dinner before Alexis and Conner get here."

* * *

><p>Kate walked out of Castle's study to find her gun sitting out on the coffee table across from the couch. That's weird; I thought I put that away. She picked it up and walked into the kitchen where Castle was preparing fettuccini Alfredo for dinner.<p>

"Castle?" She asked, causing her husband to look up from his masterpiece of a meal. Kate smiled at the sight of him in his 'Mr. Good Lookin' is Cookin'' apron.

"What?" He asked.

"Cute apron." She said with a smile. "I got that one for you didn't I?"

Castle laughed. "Yeah, came in a two pack with the 'Will Cook For Sex' apron."

Kate nodded. "Ah, yeah I remember that one."

"You should. That's the one I like to make you pancakes in after a long night of-"

Kate cut him off by pressing a gentle kiss to his mouth.

"What was that for?" Castle asked, grinning like an idiot.

Kate shrugged. "I need a reason now?"

Castle shook his head and reluctantly turned back to the food. It was then that Beckett remembered why she entered the kitchen in the first place. She sat her gun on the counter for Castle to see. "Rick, didn't I put this away?"

"Uh, yeah." He lied.

"You got it out didn't you?" She asked knowingly.

Castle's shoulders slumped. "Please Kate!"

"No!" She said. "You're not leaving my gun out to scare Alexis' boyfriend!"

Castle sat the spoon he had been using down. "Oh come on! I won't pick it up or anything. I'll just leave it there and he can see it on his own."

Kate opened her mouth to say something but a knock at the door interrupted her. She turned to leave the kitchen before turning back to look at Castle. "If you're trying to be intimidation you might want to loose the apron." She said with a grin.

Castle rolled his eyes and took off the apron as she left to open the door. When she was out of sight a mischievous smile formed on his face. She left the gun. He picked it up, made sure that it wasn't loaded, and sat it right in the middle of the kitchen table for all to see.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: What did you guys think? I ended it there because the dinner itself will be pretty lengthy so I'm just going to make it its own chapter. I'll try to have it sooner than this chapter was updated. I really am sorry guys. :P<strong>

**Oh, and a few chapters back we learned that Castle and Beckett will appear on TV for an interview and I thought it would be kind of fun if you guys could submit some questions you'd like to be asked in the interview for AU Castle and Beckett to answer. If you like that idea and would want to submit a question leave it and I'll try to write it in. (:**


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